Evaluation of Educational Strategies in the Design Process of Infrastructure for a Healthy Sustainable Housing Community

Abstract

There is a growing trend in academic research in Saudi Arabia on the topics related to sustainable housing and the relative health of the occupants. This article deals with the evaluation of the innovative teaching strategies implemented while completing the planning of a healthy sustainable housing project in an intensive design studio workshop of 3rd year students at the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam. The students were supervised by the respective department faculty members as well as the experts from the industry invited for the sessional and final jury exams. The studio workshop resulted in a comprehensive master plan of a healthy sustainable neighborhood that was designed based on the main objective of the health of the occupants. The designed master plan took into account the national and international planning standards, local housing policies, and regulations. Students showed substantial advances in their skills and understanding of the project. The output of the design studio was measured by comparing the average student score and online feedback surveys for the last five years.

Keywords

• Sustainable housing
• Healthy living
• Neighborhood planning
• Design studio
• Infrastructure